IM 12.3.

6 Introduction to the
Neurons and Conduction

Adapted by
Dr. Sandra Younan
Professor of Physiology
Kasr el Aini faculty of Medicine
Cairo University

2024-2025
Objectives
By the end of this lecture, the student should be able to:
• Define an excitable tissue and mention its
characteristic
• Define resting membrane potential and outline
its ionic basis
• Define action potential and describe its ionic
basis
• Describe propagation of action potential (nerve
impulse) in myelinated and unmyelinated nerves
• Discuss impulse transmission from neuron to
another
Cardiac muscle Skeletal muscle

Nerve cell (neuron)

Smooth muscle
Excitable tissues
Excitable tissues include:
1-Nerves
2-All types of muscle
(smooth, skeletal & cardiac )
The Nerve

neurons are the structural and functional units of the

nervous system

Nerves

Excitability Conductivity Infatiguability

Excitable tissues
They are characterized by:
1-Having big value of resting membrane potential
2-Responding to simulation by a series of changes
in the membrane potential ➔ ACTION
POTENTIAL
Resting membrane Potential (RMP)
= the potential difference between
the outer and inner surfaces of the
cell membrane during rest
▪ The outer surface of the cell
membrane is positively charged
while the inner side of the cell
membrane is negatively charged
▪ RMP in excitable tissues ranges
between -70 to -90 mV
Causes of resting membrane potential:
1. Selective Permeability (Main
factor)➔Continuous potassium efflux through
transmembrane protein channels out of the cell.
This efflux causes accumulation of positive (+)
charges on the outer surface of the cell membrane
2. Sodium-Potassium pump
It extrudes 3 sodium ions out of the cell in exchange for
2 potassium ions intruded into the cell ➔accumulation
of positive (+) charges outside the cell
 Cell interior Cell membrane Cell Exterior

K+
Na + Na + Na +
K+
K+
Na + K+ Na +
K+
Na + Na +
K+ K+ K+
Proteins _ ve
_ ve
Cl - Cl -
_ ve

Cl - Cl -
_ ve _ ve Cl - Cl -
Neutral Neutral
 Cell interior Cell membrane Cell Exterior

(K+ efflux is a main cause of RMP)

K+ - + Na +
K+ K+

Na + Na + Na +
K+

K+ - +
3 Na + Na +
Na+/K+ Na +
pump
Proteins 2K+
_ ve
_ ve - +
_ ve Cl - Cl -
_ ve
Cl -
_ ve
_ ve _ ve Cl - Cl -
Negatively charged Positively charged
ACTION POTENTIAL

When the excitable tissue is stimulated by an

adequate (threshold) stimulus, series of
changes occur in the resting membrane
potential ➔action potential

Adequate stimulus

Chemical
Thermal
Mechanical
Nerve cell
Electrical
potassium opens much slower than the
sodium pump so all the sodium that can get
in would have already been in then it opens
and potassium gets out
Action potential
involves Voltage
gated ion channels

Each ion has its own

channel to pass
through it
Ex: Na+ channels
K+ channels
 Action potential Potassium efflux

depolarisation :decrease in negativity

Membrane depolarisation at first is slow (some of the potential difference between inside and
outside : 105 mV because we changed
potential (mv) sodium channels open not all ) until -65 mV
and then all sodium pumps open not all from -70 to 35 so total is mV
+35 Na+ Na+ Na+
Na+ Na+ Na+
Na+

K+ Na+
ion

K+ K+ K+
Depolarization

0 K+
Repolarizat

K+ Na+
Electrogenic sodium The cell
potassium pump
K+
K+ K+ K+ K+ K+ K+ K+ Na+

Na+ Na+ Na+ Na+

Na+ Na+ Na+ Na+ Na+
potassium channels open at +35 mV and (efflux) outflow of
Stimulus
potassium to the outside occurs and depolarisation occurs

-70
Resting membrane
resting state potential
After hyperpolarization
Time (ms)
 Action potential
because potassium
Membrane channels close
slowly outside and
potential (mv) All voltage-gated Na+ channels are closed is exaggerator
+35 negative because
more than expected
potassium ( after
-70 )goes to the out
ion
Depolarization

this is called
0
All voltage-gated K+ channels are open hyperpolarized
Repolarizat

therefore sodium
potassium pump
works to return the
cell to normal
potential

All voltage-gated Na+ channels are open

Some of the voltage-gated Na+ channels start to open

-65
-70

Stimulus After hyperpolarization

Time(ms)
-65 mv is called firing state
(positive feedback )
 Action Potential
• Electric changes in the membrane potential in the form
of a transient reversal of polarity of an excitable cell
(nerve or muscle) in response to a threshold stimulus (a
stimulus that has adequate strength and adequate
duration)
in the following sequence:
1. Depolarization
• ↓membrane potential which is slow at first, then becomes
rapid
• Membrane potential drops to zero then increases with
reversal of polarity (the outer surface of the cell
membrane becomes negative, while the inside is positive)
 Action Potential
2. Repoalrization:
• The membrane potential moves towards the resting
value. It is rapid at first, then it becomes slow

3. After hyperpolarization
• The membrane potential increase slightly above the
resting value
inflow of sodium outflow of
potassium excess outflow of
potassium
Ionic Changes during action potential

1. During depolarization, there is sudden marked

increase in membrane permeability to sodium ➔
rapid massive sodium influx ➔ reversal of
polarity of the cell membrane

2. During repolarization , there is marked increase in

cell permeability to potassium ➔rapid potassium
efflux
 either all thosee steps happen or they don’t at all

Properties of action Potential

1-It is an all or non response

Propagation of Action Potential in
unmyelinated nerves
• Once initiated, an action potential is
self- propagated along the cell
membrane of the excitable tissue
• Self propagation of the action
potential occurs by local current flow
from the active point (depolarized
area) to the inactive (resting .i.e.
polarized) point
 action potential is transmitted from beginning of axon
hillock to the end
at the axin hillock is the sight of
initiation of action potential

at each segment the previous electrical difference between depolarized part

segment is used as a stimulus for and its neighbouring polarized segment
sodium potassium pumps
happens in only 10% of the
nerve cells

previously polarised segment because polarised and its neighbour

becomes depolarized because electrical signals move from positive to
negative (local current flow .

Propagation of action potential in an unmyelinated nerve by local current flow

Propagation of Action Potential
in myelinated nerves

-
&

Saltatory conduction
 Advantages of saltatory conduction
signals jump so it is more rapidly

1- Faster: only at node of Ranvier

2-Economic: less ATP used because sodium potassium pumps require atp
and here they are only used at nodes

Propagation of Action Potential in myelinated

nerves by saltatory conduction
 Chemical
Transmitter

ynapse
Receptors

ynaptic transmission
 name of chemical transmitter changes
voltage
gated
calcium
channels
release of
chemical
transmitt
ers by
exocytosi
s
then the
chemical
transmitt
er binds
to their
receptor
in the
next
nerve cell

Chemical synapse
 References:
Guyton & Hall: Textbook Of Medical Physiology.
Lippincotte Illustrated Reviews Physiology